Scarlet Love
by darkheart753
Summary: Espio is mad at Shadow and tries to get him out of Chaotix. Rouge stands up for Shadow and gets kicked out herself. What will Shadow's reaction be? Will he stay in Chaotix? Why am I asking questions that I know the answers to? Read to find out!
1. Chapter 1

Some material may be unsuitable for young children. These stories have been edited from their original in mind versions and edited for content that would force me to rate the story M for Mature. Reader discretion is advised.

Long story short, Espio is mad at Shadow and he tries to get Shadow kicked out of Team Chaotix. Rouge stands up for him and ends up getting kicked off the team. What's her reaction going to be? What is Shadow going to say? And will Shadow even choose to stay in Chaotix after treating her like that?

Disclaimer: I don't own any Sonic the Hedgehog™ characters. The only ones I own are Jesse and Jade.

Story: Scarlet Love

Rating: T for Language and Drug Use

Setting: Sonic X world

Couples: Sonic X Amy, One-sided Jade X Shadow, Knuckles X Rouge, Shadow X Rouge

Chapter 1

"I've had it with that stupid hedgehog. He's always so smug and full of himself. I've had it up to here. Especially after what he did to Sonic this morning!" Espio snarled. He was standing at the front of a long table that was framed by a bruised and crying Sonic being comforted by Amy, Tails, Cream, Cheese, Knuckles, Vector, Charmy, and Rouge. Espio slammed his fist on the table. "He's a loose cannon ready to snap and he's a threat to us all."

"I agree, Espio. I've had enough of Shadow too." Vector snapped. "There's no way I'm letting him stay on the Chaotix team."

"Hey! That isn't fair!" Rouge stood up for Shadow. "He always gave us a second chance, even after we tried to take him out. We turned him into the GUN and he came back when he got out, saying that he didn't care that we had done that to him and he had forgiven us. Why shouldn't we give him another chance to even the score? You know, a life for a life, the debt is repaid? He gave each and every one of us a chance to redeem ourselves in his eyes, and we took it. Why shouldn't we let him try to redeem himself?"

"She has a point." Cream looked up.

"Well, he may have done that, and in the beginning I would have agreed with you. Last week he broke Knuckles' leg."

"Which is still broken!" Knuckles added.

"He threatened to slit Vector's throat," Espio continued angrily, "and he almost strangled me to death in our last fight! He doesn't know when to back off. He always wants to be the winner. He needs to go."

"I agree with Espio, Rouge. Shadow is nothing but trouble. He needs to either go our way and stop being so cruel or hit the road. I'll even burn the little trash he owns."

"You can't do that! He only has that one picture of Maria and the clothes I got him for Christmas to replace his old, tattered battle shirts and torn pants. Those are important to him. He loved Maria and the photo is his only memory of her that he isn't in constant peril of losing. And those clothes cost an arm and a leg!"

Meanwhile, Shadow was in his room messing with his hair. "Hmm… Sonic had that coming. Nobody makes fun of Maria and gets away with it. What kind of asshole buys an ugly little yellow-haired and blue-eyed Chao and calls it Maria? It was rude and uncalled for and I have no regrets for beating him to within an inch of his life." Shadow picked up a bottle of hair-gel and poured a bit into the palm of his hand, proceeding to toss it on his head and rub it into the scalp to hold his hair in place. He used his spare hand to flip on the radio, tune it to the random station, and proceeded to bob his head to_ Ladies and Gentlemen_ by Saliva.

"Fine! We'll vote on it! All in favor of Shadow getting kicked out of the house raise your hand." Everyone but Rouge and Cream raised their hand. Including Sonic, the one who had always given Shadow the second chance. "It's decided. When Shadow gets out of his bedroom, we'll tell him."

"HEY! At least give him a week to clean up his act."

Silence. "Fine. One week. No more."

"And no less."

"Seven days, the equivalent of 168 hours." Espio snapped. "But you're going to be the one to tell him."

"But…" Rouge began.

In the meantime, Shadow was walking down the stairs dressed in black jeans, a white T-shirt, a black leather jacket, and his rocket boots.

"No buts. If Shadow doesn't clean up his act in less then eight days, he's done." Shadow raised an eyebrow to this and leaned against the wall, lighting a cigarette as he eavesdropped on the conversation.

"Espio, this isn't fair."

"It's perfectly fair, you little brat. You didn't want him gone right away, so you're going to pay the price. You tell him."

Rouge was silent for a moment, and then lifted her head. She wiped her hair out of her eyes. "Well, if you aren't man enough to, I will. I can't help it that you're afraid of your own shadow. I know my shadow isn't scary. And Shadow isn't a bully. He's misunderstood. You guys just can't comprehend what he's been through. He doesn't really realize that what's in the past is in the past and revenge is not the answer."

This is getting good. Better then I thought it was going be, matter of fact.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I don't own any Sonic the Hedgehog™ characters. The only ones I own are Jesse and Jade.

Chapter 2

"I beg to differ." Shadow walked into the room, making everyone jump. "You may think revenge is never the answer, but I don't. In fact, it says in that little book you mortals worship, from His mouth, 'An eye for an eye.' I'm technically not doing anything against your mortal morals. And when I prove to the world that nobody should ever mess with me and I've had my 'fun', I'll be gone before you can say goodbye. Is that okay with you, faker?"

"I…"

"I wasn't, for once, referring to you, you oversized blueberry. I was referring to the f-ugly (1) chameleon. I mean, come on. You complained that I'm a threat, when you, in fact, I remember seeing in a mall with an _armed gun_ shooting at civilians just last month."

"Hey, I wasn't… you were eavesdropping."

"I heard what I heard."

"You eavesdropped!"

"I assure you, I took no pleasure in listening to you piss and moan about me. If you want me gone, just say the word and I'll walk out that door and you'll never see my hide again. I prefer straightforward honesty to talking behind my back. If you were going to talk about this as a group, invite the whole group, including the OTHER six people who enjoy my company so it would be a little grab bag of personality. You know, Smoke, Pyro, Sky, Aqua, Rohan, and Jesse? Could you maybe possibly level the playing field for once? Or… are you not man enough to face a challenge?"

"Shadow, you're pissing me off."

Shadow smirked. "Good. Then I made my quota of teaching someone a lesson and getting somebody pissed off. Now if you'll excuse me, I have an appointment with a cue stick and a pint. See you suckers later." Shadow responded cheekily, turning about-face and walking away.

Rouge ran after him and grabbed his shoulder. He jumped and grabbed her hand, yanking it by the wrist and immediately moving into the Full-Nelson position. She gasped as he pushed the air out of her lungs so quickly. He soon realized who it was and released her.

"Sorry. I thought you were someone else. Just… don't pull something stupid like that again, okay? I have to go. I'm meeting Jesse at the pub and we're going to do Jell-O shots until we pass out. See you later, Rouge."

Shadow started to walk away, but paused. He spun about and looked at Rouge. "Just between you, me, and the fencepost, thanks for standing up for me back there. It's good to know _someone_ on this team can tell what's true and what's false. And, Rouge?" Shadow stepped a bit closer. He lifted her chin so that they were eye to eye and tilted his head.

"Oh, and Rouge… I sort of wanted to tell you earlier but…" Shadow paused and shut his eyes. He opened them again and they looked softer… more mortal. "Somewhere between our first meeting and the battle against Biolizard, I kind of… fell in love with you."

Shadow brought his head closer to hers and began kissing her. She jumped and her eyes widened, but then she gave a soft, enjoying moan and slowly lowered her eyelids, returning the kiss. Her leg slowly lifted from the ground and bent as she leaned into the passionate kiss. Moments later, Knuckles came walking out and saw the kiss. He instantly grew jealous and envious of Shadow for getting Rouge to kiss him so.

_Shadow! That girlfriend-stealing son of a bitch. Wait a second… that isn't… Rouge's leg doing the passion bend thing, is it? Is this really a real kiss? No, it couldn't be. Not after I told her how I felt about her. That son of a bitch! I'll annihilate him!_ Knuckles thought angrily, growing more infuriated with every step he took towards the two. He grabbed Shadow's shoulder and yanked him free of Rouge, causing Shadow to get dizzy. His eyes, on contact from Knuckles, returned to their sharp, hating state. Shadow, once he regained his balance, glowered at Knuckles, who quickly acted and threw the hardest punch he could throw at the ultimate life form. Shadow flew back and crashed into the brick fence that was around the Chaotix base. His body immediately went limp.

"So, you think you can just steal Rouge from me, eh?"

"Knuckles, you insignificant little twit! I was just giving Shadow something other then test tubes to examine."

"Oh please! What was he supposed to be examining, your mouth with his tongue?"

"Actually, yes." Shadow replied curtly as he staggered to his feet and wiped his lip. He looked at the now crimson glove, shaking his head. He looked up, eyes ablaze. "I'm going to tear you apart!" Shadow charged at Knuckles and tackled him.

About thirty-five minutes later, Knuckles found himself staring at the ceiling of the Chaotix sick room. "What happened?"

"You challenged Shadow and he practically turned you into a living, breathing punching bag." Rouge smirked. "How many times does he have to kick the living poop out of you before you figure out that you'll never beat Shady?"

Knuckles turned his head towards the corner and saw Shadow glaring at him with a pack of ice that Rouge had made him use strapped to his now-fractured elbow. He looked rather pissed off. The hedgehog got up and walked over to Knuckles, wincing as he folded his arms across his chest.

"Did we learn our lesson?"

"Obviously not. You're still here."

"Oh my god." Shadow turned around and threw his hands up in the air. They fell back to his sides and he looked at the misshapen form of the echidna. "You just can't take a hint, can you? You chose the day of the week, it was your rules and your playing field, I gave you the first punch, I let you get away with kicking me in the balls, I still beat you, but you can't understand that I can beat you with my hands tied behind my back? How many times do I have to thrash you before you figure out that I'm just too much for you? You have more strength; I'll give you that. But I have more agility, speed, endurance, charisma, submission tactics, AND good looks." Rouge rolled her eyes and smirked. "You just can't beat me, echidna. There are two words that fully express how you should be acting. GIVE UP!"

"Shadow, I have two problems with your speech. One; I never give in until all possible tactics are used and I have no other ideas. And two; you're not better looking then I am. Apparently you can't fess up to that."

"Eyes that look are common. Eyes that see are rare." Shadow snarled. "For those placental mammals who don't understand phrases, I'll dumb it down a bit. People who look at someone and judge by what they see are common. People who look at someone and don't judge by the looks and instead meet the person and then judge them by the soul within them are rare. In laymen's terms, don't judge a book by its cover."

"Shadow!" Espio snapped as he walked in. "I heard about that little fight you had with Knuckles. That's strike one. If I hear that you've been doing anything illegal against your parole, anything at all, you're out. No third strike. Goodbye, good riddance, and on with life."

"Pleasure, chameleon. I hope you're hungry. Because later in the week, I assure you that you will need a fork and a very large mouth, which you already have, to EAT YOUR WORDS. Better make the rest soft and sweet." With that, Shadow spun on his heel and left the room, his jacket still in tact and whipping in the wind.

"Great job, Espio. Shadow was just being Knuckles' mentor. He was trying to teach him a valuable lesson in life."

"What was that? Don't try to bash in my head?"

"No. Don't judge a book by its cover. That's the one phrase that Shadow, I am sure, would love for everybody to start living by."

Ooh, Espio got treated. Sweet, huh?


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I don't own any Sonic the Hedgehog™ characters. The only ones I own are Jesse and Jade.

Chapter 3

Meanwhile, outside, Shadow had a new cigarette in his mouth and was talking to himself.

"What a hotshot. I hate everybody on that stupid little party of Sonic's, especially that chameleon. I hope he chokes. Maybe I'll get lucky and an elephant will caress him with its toes." Shadow paused and listened to his sharp words. "Maybe I shouldn't be so hard on the fools. Besides, Rouge is on that team. Maybe being the good guy all the time would be more enjoyable than being the hated outcast of Westopolis. Maybe." Shadow slumped and leaned against the wall. He felt a drop of liquid rap his nose. Suddenly, as soon as it started, it began pounding him, soaking his clothes and hair. "Great. Could this day get any worse?" Then, it started hailing just as violently. "Hypothetically, yes."

Shadow shook his fur and walked into the house again, having missed his meeting with Jesse. He took of his jacket and hung it on a jet-black hook that everyone thought he had cursed somehow, because every time someone other then him touched it, they ended up in the sick room or the hospital. He shook his head and rung out his hair, then started up the staircase to his room in the attic.

Espio stopped him on his way up. Shadow snarled at him and pushed the chameleon's hand off of his shoulder.

"What do you want, chameleon? Blood? Maybe you want me to bend and break for you? Huh? What's the weak link in your chain? Why do you hate me? And why do you think I give a DAMN what you think? I haven't even busted your face in yet since I had the misfortune of meeting you. You're not judging by looks, are you?"

Espio grabbed Shadow's chin and drew his dark face closer to his own. "Listen up, hedgehog. I've had enough of your crap. I don't care what Rouge has to say. Majority wins in the vote, so you're out of here. I want your stuff packed before dawn tomorrow."

"I'll take pleasure in disappointing you, but I'm not going anywhere. Not as long as people who actually like me have a vote. If you want me gone, there's a bullet with my name on it _somewhere_. I even made the damn thing sharp enough to rip through me. Get the rifle and take your best shot, because after that, if you die, it's in self-defense and the heat can't take me downtown. Bring it on."

"One of these days your mouth is going to get you in trouble."

"I'll embrace it. My world is always on fire. I like it that way. It's impossible to get bored." Shadow ripped free of the chameleon's grip and smirked. "Oh, by the way, you really need to do something about that problem dandruff. It looks like winter started early." Shadow flipped Espio the bird as he walked away. The chameleon growled.

"I mean it Shadow! I'll find a way to get you off of our team!"

Shadow's eyes rolled in their sockets as Shadow opened the door to his room. He looked at his bed. He had made it himself; a pile of gems he had found while hunting for victims in his the time of his vampirism. That was before he became the ultimate life form, before Blade drove a stake through his chest. Shadow had long forgotten Blade's actions and forgave him. On top of the pile, to hide them from sticky-fingered bats, not mentioning any names, was a sheet that he had carefully placed on the pile to make it square. Then there was a black blanket and a red pillow. He sat down on the hard bed; that was how he liked it. Hard and flat was the type of 'mattress' he was used to. His eyes strayed over to a photo of him and Rouge on Christmas (wearing Santa hats), one of them on Thanksgiving (dressed as pilgrims to entertain Cream, Charmy, and Tails), one of them on Halloween (Shadow was a vampire and Rouge was a vampires), and even one of them on Independence Day (Shadow was dressed as an early colonist with a rifle and Rouge had a little American flag sewed on her jacket). Shadow started humming, getting up to clean his room. Soon, he found himself singing, in his very low, bass voice, Photograph by Nickelback.

"Look at this photograph. Every time I do it makes me laugh. How did her eyes get so red? And what the hell is on Joey's head?" Shadow continued cleaning and humming, but soon Rouge walked in and interrupted him.

"I was just talking to Espio. He said that you bluntly refused to leave if you didn't fix your act in less then a week. And he told me that… I was fired."

"What?" Shadow's head shot up from its previous position and his eyes flashed. "He fired you? What for?"

"He fired me for… standing in your defense. I didn't think it was fire that you were on trial but you weren't there. He called it treason." Rouge lowered her head and the floor, in tiny droplets, became darker. "Vector agreed with him."

Shadow walked over to her, confused by this emotion she was showing. He was programmed with only two emotions; one of which was anger, and the other… he didn't know what was. But he felt it towards Rouge. He put his finger under her chin and gently lifted her head. He recognized to thin, dark lines running down her cheeks as tears.

"No, don't cry. I promise you I'll fix my act and get your job back. It's my fault anyway. I've been a loose cannon lately but… it's for a reason. I get extremely ornery this time of year every year. It's nearing..." Shadow trailed off and turned. "Forget it. It's a stupid reason."

"Tell me Shadow. Why?"

"It's nearing the sixty-seventh anniversary of my creation… and the fifty-first anniversary of Maria's death."

"I'm so sorry."

"Don't be." Shadow shuddered and sat down on his bed. He felt his knees begin to turn to jelly—the same way they had before he had that little mental breakdown ten years before, ten years before that, ten years before now, ten years before that, and the day Maria was killed so brutally by GUN. He held his head in his hands and Rouge sat next to him, rubbing his back.

"Shadow, it's all right."

"No, it's not. Not a day passes when I don't think I could have done better, I could have done more to prevent it."

"Don't say that. You know it isn't true. There was nothing you could do. You gave it your best shot. Your best just wasn't enough at the time."

"I suppose you're right."

"Shadow, look at me."

Shadow turned his dark head towards Rouge. "I know how you feel. I had a younger sister once, named Sable. She was a black bat with white wings. She looked just like me. I think you would have liked her."

"Hmm… a black bat with white wings. She looked just like you… I think… yeah, I think I saw her once. She'd be about thirteen now, right?"

"Uh-huh."

"Yeah… she was killed by a bullet, right?"

"Yeah."

"Oops. My bad." Shadow lowered his head and blushed. "I was at… target practice and a bullet strayed."

"By 'at target practice', you mean shooting at GUN soldiers, right?"

"I said target practice, but that works just as well. Returning fire, as it were."

Rouge stared at the wall for a few moments, then looked back at Shadow and raised an eyebrow. "You aren't homosexual, are you?"

"Wha-What? Homosexual? ME? Are you quite in the correct state of mind?" Shadow raised an eyebrow to Rouge. "Aren't you the same Rouge I was making out with in the front yard? If I were gay, why would I make out with you? If I were gay, WHICH I'M NOT, I would have made out with Sonic, or Knuckles, or Vector, or Espio, or Egghead."

"So you've considered it?"

Shadow glared at Rouge. "You little twerp!"

"Love you to." Rouge grabbed the back of Shadow's head and started kissing him. Just then Shadow's ex-girlfriend, Jade, walked in. "SHADOW THE HEDGEHOG, YOU TWO-TIMING SCOUNDREL!"

Uh-oh. This spells trouble.


	4. Chapter 4

Disclaimer: I don't own any Sonic the Hedgehog™ characters. The only ones I own are Jesse and Jade.

Chapter 4

"I thought you loved me! ME! Not that little whore!" Jade snapped.

Rouge immediately pulled away and crossed her arms. "Huh? Shadow, I thought you were single."

Shadow looked from Jade to Rouge with eyes the size of watermelons. "Wow. I must be really good at keeping secrets. Even I didn't know that I wasn't single. I swear we broke up ten years ago."

"You also met me ten years ago."

"Actually, I met you exactly nine years, three hundred-two days, thirteen hours, two minutes, and six seconds ago."

"That's the only thing I ever hated about you, Shadow. You keep an exact track of every thing that happens." Jade walked over to the bed and sat next to Shadow. "I came to tell you that I want you back."

_Oh, great. Torn between two insanely beautiful bats that both like me and are ready to claw each other's eyes out is not a place I would prefer to be. Hmm… I can't do eenee meenie minie moe because I always forget the little rhyme thing. I can't choose by looks because that's shallow and considering I think they both look beautiful, it won't work. I can't choose for figure because that's the same thing as looks. I can't choose for money because that's stupid, rude, and shallow. And I can't choose for how they treat me because they treat me the same; if I'm helping the good guys, I get praise, but if I'm saying something perverted, I'm on the bad guy side, or if I fuck something up, I get kicked in the balls and my head chomped off. This is quite the predicament. It wouldn't be fair for me to drop Rouge after telling her how I feel and kissing her twice. And both of them were completely true and passionate. On the other hand, if I don't take back Jade, she makes for a formidable foe in life. Especially with all the connections she has. She could completely and utterly destroy my reputation. Oh wait. My reputation is already up shit creek without a paddle._ Shadow thought to himself. _Oh well. I'll go with one and hope for the best._ "Jade, I'm sorry, but you broke up with me and now I've got someone else to care about other then you. I don't love you anymore."

"But… but… but…"

"No buts, Jade. You are the one who wanted to break up. It was your mistake. Deal with it." Shadow paused. "Whoa. Major role switch."

"No kidding."

"Shadow, you can't do this to me! I am Jade McBat, princess of Mammalia!"

"Yeah? Well, I'm Shadow the Hedgehog, death-dealer of Westopolis, but you don't see me shouting it to the heavens."

"I'll get you for this, Shadow the Hedgehog. Mark my words."

"Consider them marked." Shadow paused. "By the way, good luck with ruining my reputation. I always look forward to a challenge in life. I could even use it in my comedy act."

Cheeky, isn't he? By the way, in the next chapter, you'll see one of Shadow's comedy acts.


	5. Chapter 5

Disclaimer: I don't own any Sonic the Hedgehog™ characters. The only ones I own are Jesse and Jade.

Chapter 5

Shadow cracked his knuckles, standing behind the curtain of the stage. He gulped nervously.

"You'll be fine, Shadow." Rouge encouraged him.

"Alright. Here goes everything." Shadow walked out of the curtains and held up his middle fingers. The crowd cheered loudly. He jogged over to the microphone and picked it up.

"Good morning, Westopolis! I love it here, first of all very quiet. Have you ever been in a truly quiet room? You know, where it's so damn quiet that when a pin drops, you're ears start ringing? I love that. It's perfect.

"Have you noticed how things are always different between pre-mid-life crisis and post-mid-life crisis? Like, before my mid-life crisis, nobody would leave me alone people kept pestering me, you know? After the mid-life crisis, nobody would spend time with me. I remember walking down the street a month before my little crisis and people would shout 'Hey Shadster!' or 'Hossit, Shad?' Thirty-two days later, I was walking down the street and people were practically shitting themselves. I'd smirk and wave and they would form a cross with their fingers. It was funny, too. Made for good insurance, you know? Last week I went into the post office and the clerk gave me a bunch of shit for wanting to by three sheets of stamps and Post-It notes. If I'd have done that about five years ago, the clerk would have put them on the counter in a New York minute and said 'Here. No charge. Just don't shoot me.' Before my mid-life crisis, my favorite band was between Aerosmith and Metallica. After that, they were Maroon 5 and Daughtry. It's funny. I never thought I'd be listening to what modern teenagers listen to, but here I am.

"Teenagers scare the shit out of me. I'm physically a teenager, and sometimes I scare the shit out of myself. But the worst kind of teenager is the one that's between the age of thirteen and fifteen. They could care less as long as someone's willing to bleed. I would rather rip my ears off then try to reason with one of those brats. But the worst teenager is a girl. I remember I was talking to this girl by the name of Jade McBat, princess of Mammalia. We were dating for about three years. She broke up with me and now I'm with Rouge the Bat. She works for the government. Jade came crawling back to me after a full ten years of being broken up and assumes that I would take her back immediately. And she called me a two-timing son of a bitch! Later, on the way her, we got into a little verbal war over it. She even went as far as using the 'C' word! …I know!

"Girls are meaner then guys. You know why? Because girls care about everything. A guy can walk up to another guy, say a tubby guy, and he'll say 'What's up, lard-ass?' What will the fat guy say? 'Not much.' If a girl walks up to a fat girl, they can say 'What's up, lard-ass?' The fat girl will respond by saying 'You insensitive bitch!' and will proceed to claw her eyes out. One minute a guy will be fighting, and the next, he'll be sitting down enjoying a beer with the guy he was just fighting with. One minute a girl will be fighting, and the next she'll still be fighting. Possibly killing, too. But my favorite part of it is when the girls that are fighting are WWE divas. Mmmhmm. You know I'm right. The worst time to get into a fight with a girl is the holidays, like Christmas.

"Have you ever thought of how much junk you would have at the end of the twelve days of Christmas? Let's think about this for a minute. On the first day, you get a partridge in a pear tree. You get one of each of those for all twelve days. On the second day, you get two turtledoves. You get two of those for eleven days. On the third day, you get three French hens. You get three of them for ten days. On the fourth day, you get four calling birds. You get four of them for nine days. On the fifth day, you get five golden rings. You get five of those for eight days. On the sixth day, you get six geese. All of these six geese are laying eggs. Let's say that each goose lays six eggs a day. You get six of them laying six eggs for the rest of the week. On the seventh day, you get seven swans swimming. You get seven of those for six days. On the eighth day, you're house has begun to smell like bird shit, AND you're boyfriend… or girlfriend, as the case may be… gets you eight maids to milk. They need something to milk, so what does he… or she… get them? COWS! So you get eight maids and eight cows every day for five days. Can you say herd? On the ninth day, your so-called 'true love' gets you nine ladies to dance. You get nine of those for the next four days. On the tenth day, you receive ten lords… jumping around, no less! You're going to receive those for three days including today. On the ELEVENTH day, your lover sends you eleven pipers piping. Yes, you may like the pipe, but they aren't stopping for anything. You get to listen to them pipe for two days before your lover gives you something else. On the twelfth and final day… thank god… your baby sends you twelve drummers drumming. Now, your house is filled to the brim with useless shit that you didn't need in the first place. You've got to get a size one million pond for your swans and geese. Then, you've got to hire people to pick up the bird crap, haul the milk to the market, and pick pears before they fall. Next, you need to get a ballroom installed onto your house, a soundproof room for the pipers and the drummers, and you need to get cages for your birdies. That adds up to 676 things. So much for true love, eh? One more thing: What the fuck are you going to do with forty rings? Are you going to put four rings on each finger? Seriously!

"I just have one last thing to point out before the next guy comes out. Piercing. People of this day and age worship the earring, naval ring, nose ring, lip ring, tongue ring, etcetera. Why? When did shrapnel become a fashion accessory? You guys have been great! Thank you!" Shadow put the microphone back and held up his middle fingers towards a large picture of the president as he ran back off the stage. Rouge hugged him tightly.

"Shadow, you're amazing, you're a genius!" She held his head by the cheeks and kissed him.

"Rouge, I want to ask you something."

"Anything."

"I want to know if you would want to go out to dinner and a movie tonight at eight o'clock."

"Dinner and a movie? That sounds great. I'd love to. There's just one thing. You need to see this." Rouge took him into the back and showed him the TV screen. Jade was sitting in a chair on the six thirty news.

"And then… he tore of my skirt… and told me that if I screamed, he would kill me."

"That monster! What did Shadow do then?"

"You've got to be shitting me." Shadow interrupted the announcer, turning off the TV. "That whore is claiming that I raped the bitch?"

"Yes."

Shadow shook his head and threw his hands up, turning around. He walked three steps and looked at Rouge. "There's no way I can stand up in court. They'll eat me alive. All they need to hear is 'homicidal rapist' and I'm done for. I'm toast. I'm doomed… wait a second… they need to find bodily fluids inside her that exactly match my DNA to prove it. That's impossible. I'm still a virgin."

"You're a virgin?"

"Hey, when you're out on the battle field, it's extremely difficult to lose virginity unless you're a mother-fucking, cock-sucking asshole. Then it's easy." Shadow paused. "And know, she's on my shit list. I'm going to make her suffer. I'll prove my innocence, and then I'll make her life a living hell." Shadow picked up the phone and called Jade's cell phone.

On the TV, Jade pushed speaker on her phone. "Hello?"

"Jade? Is that you? It's Shadow. I just wanted to know why you were lying through your teeth on public television when everyone who knows me as I am knows that the only crime I've ever committed is seeking revenge. Why would you want to ruin my reputation? What have I ever done to you other then decline a date? I'm dating Rouge the Bat. Why would I cheat on her with a whore like you who uses people's one weakness to completely and totally ruin their reputation? There was only one time in my life that I loved you, but that was before you broke up with me. Then I got a Doberman pinscher. A bitch, just like you. Jade McBat, you have called me an ass, a rapist, a murderer, and a two-timing son of a bitch. I was just talking to one of my best friends Silver the Hedgehog. He told me that he looked back into time and found some seriously juicy dirt on you. For example, you lost your virginity willingly at the age of ten. You were dating me while simultaneously raping my older brother Smoke after every date. So much for me being the two-timing son of a bitch, huh? I just have one question for you. Was it worth it?" Shadow hung up. Rouge's jaw dropped. "I was telling the honest-to-God truth. Speaking of which, I need to talk to Smoke."

"SHADOW THE HEDGEHOG, THAT IS THE LAST STRAW!" Espio burst through the doors and stormed up to Shadow. "You raped Jade McBat? How could you? Did you not listen to me at all?"

"Hold on their, hothead. Let me explain."

"No more explaining! You're fired!"

"No. No, I am not fired. I quit." Shadow smirked. "Do you know what that means, chameleon? I can do whatever I please now. Espio, you treated my girlfriend and me like shit. Now I'm going to treat you like shit. As of now, you are dead to me." Shadow turned and left the building.

"Way to go, bully." Rouge snapped at Espio, running after Shadow.

Shadow is just going through hell, huh? If you're going through hell, keep on going, y'know?

We're nearing the end. Soon, I will be done. Bummer! I was having fun with this.

Have you noticed that the only person in this story that swears is Shadow?


	6. Chapter 6

Disclaimer: I don't own and Sonic the Hedgehog™ characters. The only ones I own are Jesse and Jade.

Chapter 6

"Shadow, wait!"

"Rouge! What is it?"

Rouge stumbled and fell into Shadow's arms. "Shadow, I heard something over that way! It sounded like one of Eggman's robots!"

"Oh great."

"You have to stop him!"

"Don't worry, Rouge. I'll take him out." Shadow charged towards Eggman's robots. When he got there, he couldn't believe his eyes. Everything within three miles had been completely leveled.

"Well, Shadow, it looks like you've fallen for my trap."

"Trap? What?" Shadow suddenly felt a searing pain in his ribs. He buckled to his knees and grabbed his side. He let go and stared at the glove. It was completely crimson. "Ugh. You bastard."

"Yes! Now you gave one of two choices." To Shadow's surprise, none other then Jade McBat picked him up, grasping his left arm and holding it behind his back while holding a syringe filled with a strange black liquid to his now injured side. "You can either join me, or I'll have my little friend inject that serum and you'll die nice and slow."

"I told you I'd get back at you, Shadow. Still don't want me?"

"Jade, you're the biggest bitch I've ever met."

"Oh well." Jade kissed Shadow's cheek and smirked. "What's your answer?"

"I have three words to answer both of you."

"And those are?"

"Go fuck yourself."

"Fine. Jade, kill him." She rammed the syringe into Shadow's side. Shadow grunted and winced, then his eyelids lowered and his body went limp. Then, Jade dropped Shadow to the ground and Eggman and his troops left.

I only have one chapter left to post. Here's a riddle you can decipher to give you the outcome.

Connections make you a millionaire; combine those with friends and you're the richest man alive.


	7. Chapter 7

Disclaimer: I don't own any Sonic the Hedgehog™ characters. The only ones I own are Jesse and Jade.

Chapter 7

Rouge ran up to the scene and lifted Shadow's head. He moaned and his eyelids drifted to half-open.

"R-Rouge?"

"It's me, Shadow. Rouge."

"I lost. Badly." Shadow's head slacked and a tear escaped his eye. "Very badly."

"Shadow, don't die on me."

"I won't… Rouge, I'm immortal. I can't die."

"Oh yeah." Rouge picked up Shadow's unmoving body and carried him to the hospital.

Several days later, Espio went to the hospital to see Shadow in his condition.

"Shadow? How's it going, buddy?"

"I thought you hated me. What the fuck are you calling me buddy for?"

"Well…"

"If you think you're anywhere close to getting slipped into the will, you're nuts."

"No. I wanted to apologize for how I treated you. If I hadn't been so rude, you wouldn't be in this condition."

"Yeah, I know."

"Even when you're hurt, you can be a jerk."

"You bet your ass." Shadow lifted his arm and pointed to Espio's shirt. "You got something on your shirt." When Espio looked down, Shadow lifted his arm really quick and hit Espio's nose. "Never fall for that. It's too easy."

Sonic walked into the room. "Dude, you look like you dragged a sword across your ribcage."

Tails ran up to the side of Shadow's hospital bed. "How's it going, Shadow?"

"Pretty well, if you don't include I'm stuck in this hell house for who knows how long, the searing pain, the complete and utter boredom, and the fact that they confiscated my Shadow Rifle until I leave." Shadow ruffled Tails' hair and smirked. "The company is considerably better now that I'm in good company with a higher IQ then a rock." Tails snickered.

"I wanted to know if you would forgive me and you would agree to rejoining Team Chaotix under your terms."

"I'll forgive you. But here are my terms to rejoining Team Chaotix. We forget about everything that has happened in the last three days, you let me smoke where and when I feel like it, you have to let Rouge come back to, and you have to treat everyone like you would your best friend. Got all that?"

"I suppose."

"No supposing. You have to meet all those or I'm not coming back."

"Alright. Deal."

"Shake on it." Shadow held out his hand to Espio. Espio took it in his purple hand and shook it hard. Shadow smiled and sat up. "That wasn't so hard, was it?"

"No, it wasn't."

"Shadow?" Shadow's head turned towards the door. Rouge was standing there with a handful of papers. "I filed so that you could leave. They approved."

"You did? You didn't have to. I could have."

"Not in your condition, I wouldn't let you." Rouge set the papers on the side table and sat next to Shadow. "I was so worried about you."

"Don't worry about me. I'm a big guy. If you have to worry, worry about Eggman when I get out of here and I'm fully healed. Let's see him survive a fucking hurricane of full-power jabs."

Rouge grabbed Shadow's shoulders and yanked him into a hug. "Shadow, I'm sorry. If I hadn't told you, you wouldn't be in this condition."

"No, but the city would have been completely leveled."

"True. Do you want anything?"

"Just one thing I need you to do for me."

"What is it?"

"Lay some sugar on me, baby." Shadow started French kissing Rouge. She moaned lightly and returned the kiss. The horizon gazed through the window and shined on the loving couple. As the sunset, the cochineal tints highlighted the kiss as the most beautiful thing in the world. Nothing on the planet could match the scarlet love.


End file.
